The 2020 edition of the Zimbabwe International Book Fair (ZIBF) will focus on the relations among the book production chain stakeholders and dynamics in the industry, the ZIBF Association chairman, Memory Chirere said in a statement last week.
“The dates for the Zimbabwe International Book Fair have been set for 27 July to 1 August 2020. The (annual) Indaba Conference (which precedes the fair) will, therefore, take place on 27 and 28 July 2020. The ZIBF 2020 theme is: “Book Industry: The Dynamics Within,” Chirere said in the statement.
Explaining the theme of the confex, Chirere highlighted that unlike in the past when the book fair sought to address other issues and skirted issues affecting the various stakeholders of the book industry, the 2020 theme of the fair would focus on the industry itself.
“Having observed that most of the themes from 2011 to 2016 addressed developmental and philosophical issues, the board decided to select a theme that may give us a rare opportunity to look more closely at the internal welfare and goings-on of real people and institutions (big and small) in the book industry itself in Zimbabwe and Africa,” he said.
The ZIBF boss stressed the need for the conference and show to address the relations between various stakeholders with the view to achieve unity of purpose and tackle the various challenges facing the book industry.
“We want to dwell on the work relations between our writers and publishers, printers, booksellers and librarians, readers for example. We are convinced that a very introspective gaze at both the open and behind the scenes of the book sector may be exciting and enriching. The book industry in Zimbabwe and Africa is currently in a state that demands that we evaluate the perspectives of every stakeholder against those of others, in order to create harmony and cohesion,” Chirere said.
Chirere expressed hope that this year’s edition of the Indaba Conference which is held at the Monomotapa Hotel would enable stakeholders to openly discuss the challenges facing the industry and find lasting solutions for them.
“We have noticed that the book production chain in its various formats seems not to be united to address the opportunities (and) challenges that we have in our daily relations as creators and businesspeople. A positively open and candid forum discussion may possibly allow all stakeholders to get a 360-degree view of the situation, understand and empathise with other groups’ positions, ultimately leading to viable solutions in taking the industry into the future,” said Chirere.
The renowned author and poet indicated that some of the talking points during the event included the writers’ welfare, the scourge of piracy, the role of the publisher in the industry, the place of technology in the book industry and royalties among others.
The Zimbabwe International Book Fair, a book exhibition and conference, was first held in July 1983 in Harare. Some of its main highlights include its launch of the international compilation of “Africa’s 100 Best Books” in 2001 whose final list was published in February 2002.